Question:
What is the basis for the famous notion that the grave should be so deep that when the Angels come to question the deceased he should be able to sit without his head hitting the wooden planks?
Answer:
The upper part of the grave (above the wooden planks) should be as deep as the chest or full length of a person. And where the deceased is placed should be deep enough that the wooden planks do not touch his body. If the space is about two hand-spans[1] in length then the planks would not touch the body.
When burying the deceased there is no need to leave any space for the coming of the Angels or for the dead to sit. When the Angels come they will make space for sitting. The soil of the grave will become soft (and penetrable) like water as mentioned in (the book) ‘Haadil Arwaah’ (by Ibn Qayyim Jawziyah).[2]
ويحفر القبر نصف قامة أو إلى الصدر وإن زيد كان حسنا.
في الحجة روى الحسن بن زياد عن الإمام رحمه الله تعالى قال طول القبر على قدر طول الإنسان وعرضه قدر نصف قامة.
يوضع فيها الميت.
ويسقف عليه باللبن أو الخشب ولا يمس السقف الميت.
الطحطاوي ص 333
And Allah Ta’ala knows best.
(Faqeehul Ummah Mufti) Mahmood (Hasan Gangohi, May Allah have mercy on him).
Fatawa Mahmudiyah Vol.13 Pg.253-254
[1] (Baalish بالش) The width of a person’s hand, as measured from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the little finger, when the fingers and thumb are spread out.
[2] The editor mentions that he did not find this qoute in ‘Haadil Arwaah’. However he said it has been mentioned in a long hadith of ‘At-Tadhkirah’:
فيقعدانه فيبتدئانه بعنف و ينتهرانه بجفاء و قد صار التراب له كالماء حيثما تحرك انفسح فيه و وجد فرجة
“The two Angels will make him sit … and the soil will become for him like water, wherever he moves it will expand for him and he will find an opening.”
(At-Tadhkirah by Qurtubi Vol.1 Pg.95)
